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The children’s eyes lit up when the costumed Cat in the Hat arrived at their classrooms wearing a bright smile and bearing the gift of books. The students of Paul J. Rogers Elementary school spent the rainy day of February 28th, 2014 indoors, thumbing through the pages of books. For the entire school day, 7:40 a.m. until school was over at 1:30 p.m., they read in celebration of Read Across America Day, and in remembrance of the legendary Dr. Seuss. There were countless Dr. Seuss books present and cracked wide open for the party, but other books by other authors were present as well. Firemen, officers, volunteers from the Colton Library and Parents all came out to participate by reading to the children and taking part in the festivities. While they were read to, the little learners sat criss-cross applesauce with their eager eyes and ears focused on the stories. One moment, the classroom was silent in deep suspense, waiting for the page to flip. And next the moment, the children were cackling with laughter. As a class, the students took turns choosing books for the volunteer readers to read to them. But they also took turns reading to their classmates as well. With smiles on their faces and a book clenched between their tiny fingers, the brave readers, one after the other, delivered fun stories to their classmates and friends. Third grader, 8-year-old Nicholaus Ondatje truly appreciated the event, and every word that was read throughout the day. When asked why he felt reading was important, he replied, “because it helps you learn and it can help your vocabulary.” Read Across America Day / Dr. Seuss Day was thoroughly celebrated, as it is every year at Paul J. Rogers Elementary. The students, staff, teachers, parents, firemen, officers and other volunteers came together to bring countless stories to life.